Sake to me

Forgive the pun; the chef at Sushi Kinjo made me and my family groan with that one last time we were there. But hey, never turn down a free cup of sake. :)

So last night after work I was left to my own devices since the Usual Suspects had plans of their own for the evening. With no other people calling me up with plans, and never being one to just chill at home on a Friday night (yes, you may point out that I'm at home on a Saturday night, shush) I ended up going out for dinner with a cryptanalysis guy (we'll call him CG) who was in town on business. I wouldn't call it a date since there were no real signs that it was a date. CG just doesn't know anyone in Calgary and, as he pointed out, the clients he was working with here weren't the "fun type." I was debating all week if I was going to go and meet him or not. I haven't been chatting with him for very long (yes, another guy from the internet, so sue me) and I'm usually slower and more cautious, bordering on paranoid, when it comes to meeting new people. When I met mr. guy, was it last year? I made a mental note of his license plate should something bad happen to me and I had to text message this information to someone so they could track him down...I still have it memorized to this day just 'cuz my brain does that, but anyway. Plus, I've been feeling like a cow lately -- a first for me -- and although I'm not looking for some new romantic involvement it's still all about first impressions.

But I'm glad I met up with CG. He was full of great stories and he was easy to get along with. No awkward silences. He's the same age as The Russian though I swear you would never be able to tell. I don't know, CG is just more "hip" for his age. He had on a Diesel shirt and Pumas...And you all know how I love Pumas. Yes, I know it seems shallow but I didn't judge his clothes when we met so don't slaughter me...I just happened to rave about Pumas during some conversation and later on I noticed he was actually wearing a pair. He didn't even show them off after my Pumas spiel so extra brownie points for the guy. Plus he gets extra gold stars since he went clubbing most evenings that he was in town...A feat that me and my friends haven't even managed in a while so he put us to shame.

We went for dinner at Zen 8 though I warned him not to hold it against me if it wasn't up to snuff. I had recommended Sakana Grill to him earlier in the week but it had disappointed him. Luckily for the two of us Zen 8 was fantastic. I may not be a fan of Paul Vickers but he's got a good thing going with this restaurant. The service isn't as palsy-walsy fun as most sushi restaurants I go to, but this is for the more distinguished clientele I would say. And their food is so fresh and fabulous. The tempura ice cream was pretty nifty, too.

After that we just walked and walked and walked. It was a great night for walking, really. I pointed out some other places he should check out if he's ever back in town. We compared Calgary and Toronto (though I don't hold it against him) and he told me more stories of his travels. Took him all the way from downtown onto 17th Ave and showed him where to find a bit more life in this city on the weekends. We tried to get a table at Ming as he remembered my recommendation that he check it out (a guy who pays attention, how rare is that?) but alas, they were packed. Naturally, I had to introduce him to Caffe Beano. Then off we went again, up 4th St and back downtown 'cuz he was staying at the Delta Bow Valley. I wasn't quite sure how I was going to work it going home and all. I mean, yes, he's a grown man and he could find his way back to his hotel -- even pay for a taxi if he needed to -- but I wanted to be hospitable and represent my city properly. But on the other hand, being a female, it would not be the brightest of ideas to take him all the way to his hotel and then walk back to the C-Train platform alone. Enter Daisy, my partner in crime, who had finished off with her colleagues and was sweet enough to pluck me up from the hotel once we got there.

I was a tad concerned for Daisy since she's not fond of driving downtown, and usually when we're downtown I'm riding shotgun to help her out. At one point, since we were back at the hotel and CG had access to his rental car he offered to even take me home or just get to somewhere more familiar for Daisy. But she persevered. Martini from Blind Monk, my treat, for all her trouble.

Daisy had to tease me about this new trend of older, Eastern European men (CG was originally from Bulgaria) but at least they're not the creepy, old sort. But creepy, old men are a whole other story.